Summa W-R Hospital gets 'A' for safety

WADSWORTH -- How safe is Summa Wadsworth-Rittman Hospital? Safe enough to earn an A from The Leapfrog Group's Hospital Safety Scores program.

"We're very pleased Summa Wadsworth-Rittman Hospital (was) rated an A," President Tom DeBord said. "We were one of a few in the region."

The Leapfrog Group is a national, nonprofit organization that has been monitoring hospitals for a while, and the hospital safety report card is something new, DeBord said. He believes the recognition is based, in part, on improvements the hospital has made, which has improved the quality of patient care.

"We continue to improve," DeBord said. The score is a validation of the physicians' and staff's efforts to make sure patients are safe, and DeBord said he is appreciative of that.

The Hospital Safety Score was calculated under the guidance of The Leapfrog Group's Blue Ribbon Expert Panel using publicly available data on patient injuries, medical and medication errors and infections, according to a press release. U.S. hospitals were assigned an A, B, C, D or F for their safety. The score represents a hospital's ability to keep patients safe from infections, injuries and medical and medication errors.

"It's The Leapfrog Group's goal to give patients the information they need and deserve before even entering a hospital," said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. "We congratulate the hospitals that earned an 'A' and we look forward to the day when all hospitals in the U.S. will earn the highest scores for putting patient safety first."

Through the hospital's strategic vision, there has been a lot of construction activity in recent years. In November 2010, a new and expanded intensive care unit opened. The space, vacated by the ICU unit, was converted into surgical suites with a total of six beds, each one being between 600-700 square feet. The emergency room was also expanded.

Rittman Mayor Bill Robertson sees a connection between the projects and the safety scores.

"I'm always happy to know with process improvements and other improvements going on, the residents of Rittman have a first-class health-care facility to serve them," Robertson said.

Patient and hospital safety is always a work-in-progress, DeBord said. "I think we've been providing quality, safe care for years, but there is always room for improvement."

To see Summa Wadsworth-Rittman Hospital's scores as they compare nationally and locally, visit www.hospitalsafetyscore.org.

Reporter Bobby Warren can be reached at 330-287-1639 or bwarren@the-daily-record.com. He is @BobbyWarrenTDR on Twitter.